WWE Diva and Babe of the Year Stacy Keibler has never been shy about showing off her dance moves inside the squared circle. Now she’ll have the chance to show off her moves to a nation-wide audience when she competes in the new season of ABC’s Dancing With the Stars. Keibler will follow in the footsteps of past celebrities such as boxer Evander Holyfield, supermodel Rachel Hunter and last season’s champion, actress Kelly Monaco, and pair up with a professional ballroom dancer (Tony Dovolani) in hopes of winning the dance contest. Joining Keibler in this year’s cast will be ex-NFL player Jerry Rice, actress Tatum O'Neal and several others. WWE.com caught up with Keibler and got her thoughts on the upcoming show.
WWE.com: How did you get cast for the show? Did they come to you or did you go to them?
Stacy Keibler: I was actually talking to my mom one day when I went home to Baltimore, and she was asking me if she had seen the show. I hadn’t at that point. I had just seen half of an episode. She said I should see if I could do that, and I thought maybe I should. So, I called my publicist and asked if they were doing another season of Dancing With the Stars. She said they were, so I asked her to send my information to ABC.
We then went back and forth with the people from ABC, and I had to go to ABC and meet with the producers and the people with casting and all kinds of meetings. Then we were just kind of holding our breath and waiting. I’m just soooo excited.
WWE.com: What was it like to finally get that call after so much waiting?
Stacy Keibler: They said we should know next week, and then they would say we should know next week, and then another week. It went on for two months. Every week we were supposed to find out, but we didn’t. Then I went to a casting meeting on a Friday and they said they’d know by the end of the day, and then Friday came and went. So, it was such great news when I found out. I just wanted to know either way. So, when I heard the news I was screaming and jumping up and down and me and my roommate were dancing around the room. It was so much fun. I called everyone. All of my friends and family had been asking me if I heard so I called them all and let them know. It’s so exciting because I think it’s going to be so much fun. It’s going to be not only fun for me, but also for everyone who will get to watch and be a part of it.
WWE.com: Tell us a little bit about your dancing background.
Stacy Keibler: I started dancing when I was young, and I was a dancer my whole life until I got to high school and got into cheerleading. When I was dancing I would dance three times a week and compete on the weekends, and all I did was dance. I would tell my parents that I didn’t want to dance and wanted to play other sports like soccer. My mom always said “no, you’re going to break your legs, you have to keep dancing.” I always complained about it, and now my mom is like, “Oh, so now see where dancing has gotten you.” I also won a dance competition to become a Nitro Girl for WCW. And now who knows what will happen because I’ll be in a dance competition on national television. So, I have to thank my parents for pushing me into dancing when I was growing up. I’m not only going to do this for myself, but I want to do this for every WWE fan out there.
WWE.com: How do you think this will compare to being on SmackDown every week?
Stacy Keibler: I think this will be a nice addition to things. We’re trying to figure out how my scheduling is going to work. Because this is a competition I’m going to be practicing five to six days a week every week and the competition doesn’t’ start until Jan. 5. So, I have to learn everything I can soon. We’re going to try and work it out so I can do this and still be on SmackDown, but hopefully the fans will understand and will know what’s going on. And if nothing else, hopefully WWE can come watch me practice and show the fans on SmackDown.
WWE.com: Who was your favorite celebrity on the first show?
Stacy Keibler: I really loved John O’Hurley. I just loved him. I thought his personality was so cute and he tried so hard. When I was watching the show with my roommate, we couldn’t’ turn it off. We were just so entertained by it. It sounds cheesy before you see it, but when you see it, you’re really drawn in.
WWE.com: Kelly Monaco’s wardrobe malfunction made big news in the first season. Some even say it may have been done on purpose. Would Stacy Keibler do whatever it takes to win?
Stacy Keibler: I won’t be having any planned wardrobe malfunctions. That’s for sure.
WWE.com: With your dancing background, do you think you’ll have a leg up on the competition?
Stacy Keibler: I think that because I have rhythm and because I know choreography that it will help me. But I’ve never done any kind of ballroom dancing. I’ve always wanted too, but I’ve never done any kind of partner dancing. It will be a complete learning experience for me. Being a dancer will help, but I won’t be able to go in there and know exactly what I’m doing. I’m going to have to learn everything like everyone else.
WWE.com: If you had to pick a dance partner from WWE who would it be?
Stacy Keibler: I’d say Ric Flair. No matter what we’d be doing we’d be laughing and having a good time.
Dancing With the Stars premieres on Thursday, Jan. 6 on ABC with a two-hour special at 8/7 p.m.
